Edward Elric plays DnD.

[Worira]

So, I was re-watching episode 3 of Fullmetal Alchemist. The episode opens with Ed and Al in a library, reminiscing about their childhood over an old textbook. However, the "camera" focuses on the inside pages of the textbook, and some of it can be made out clearly. As the scene faded into the Elrics' childhood, I thought I noticed something in the upper right-hand corner of the page. It looked like the words "Prestige Classes". So, out of curiosity, I rewound, freezeframed and took this little snapshot.



And it did indeed say prestige classes! Not only that, it referenced NPCs and d20! It even mentions the specific book, Alchemy & Herbalists from Bastion Press.

So, there can only be one logical conclusion. The Elrics play DnD. Also, they apparently get their books like 60 years ahead of us.

[Silence]

Nice.....

I laughed.

[Starbuck_II]

Wow, that is cool.

[Waspinator]

That is actually really funny.

[Tokiko Mima]

Good catch!

I wonder if anyone has ever homebrewed a good transmutation alchemist PrC before? Major and minor creation just don't seem like the accurately reflect the flavor of the FMA-verse, and I'm kinda wondering if it's even possible to do without a lot of faking it.

[Gorbash]

Actually, if you pay attention to all of the documents in FMA, you'll notice that only first two sentences have any connection to that particular document, the rest is just nonsense - for example, on some other occasion the book/document describes in detail a new section of a museum in London. So, no, they aren't really playing DnD, the writers just used that paragraph as a joke, since they didn't want to write a full of page of alchemy-related stuff.

[Chronicled]

Nice catch.

On a slightly related note, while there isn't anything that properly replicates an alchemist that I can find, making Al is quite easy--high level Warforged Psion (Telepath) + True Mind Switch... with a child.

[Worira]

Actually, if you pay attention to all of the documents in FMA, you'll notice that only first two sentences have any connection to that particular document, the rest is just nonsense - for example, on some other occasion the book/document describes in detail a new section of a museum in London. So, no, they aren't really playing DnD, the writers just used that paragraph as a joke, since they didn't want to write a full of page of alchemy-related stuff.

Huh? It's not one paragraph, it's the entire page. No sentences are relevant to FMA, only the picture.

Also, I think you may have somewhat missed the point.

[Jayngfet]

I wonder if any other anime characters play DND?

[Tengu_temp]

Actually, if you pay attention to all of the documents in FMA, you'll notice that only first two sentences have any connection to that particular document, the rest is just nonsense - for example, on some other occasion the book/document describes in detail a new section of a museum in London. So, no, they aren't really playing DnD, the writers just used that paragraph as a joke, since they didn't want to write a full of page of alchemy-related stuff.

That's what you think. Alchemy textbooks are so compicated they look like gibberish to most people. Only these with sufficient talent can understand their meaning.

I wonder if any other anime characters play DND?

I'd be surprised if Konata or the folks from Genshiken didn't at least hear about pencil and paper RPGs.

[Nerd-o-rama]

A few of them are D&D characters...

[EvilElitest]

wow, that makes so much sense now.........
from
EE

[Waspinator]

People have tried to make FMA-style Alchemy for D&D; I found this awhile ago:
http://www.gameroom.com/sirwayne/dnd/dndalchemy.htm

[Conners]

I can guess what's going on with that: The Japanese animators who made it probably didn't want to go to the trouble of actually writing out alchemy-stuff in English--so they copied the text of a DnD book (whether they only had a picture, or the actual book).

This mightn't be what happened, but it seems the most likely thing to me.

[Oslecamo]

Hehe funny. Who said D&D wouldn't help you save the world?

On a slightly related note, while there isn't anything that properly replicates an alchemist that I can find, making Al is quite easy--high level Warforged Psion (Telepath) + True Mind Switch... with a child.

Al isn't a warforged. Warforgeds are still alive and need stuff like breathing.

Al is an animated suit of fullplate and True mind switch sheningans. He's completely immune to critical hits, disease, effects that affect living beings, doesn't need to rest and clearly has some sick DR. Also he can be worn and deconstructed whitout trouble.

EDIT:Or maybe it's that ALL alchemy books are written in code. Remember Edward saying once that every Alchemist worth his salt would hide his research under a scecial code? Who would suspect that an inocent board game actually holds the secrets to bend the laws of reality?

[Closet_Skeleton]

If you read the text, what it actually sounds like is a review of a DnD book.

[tgva8889]

EDIT:Or maybe it's that ALL alchemy books are written in code. Remember Edward saying once that every Alchemist worth his salt would hide his research under a scecial code? Who would suspect that an inocent board game actually holds the secrets to bend the laws of reality?

...You've discovered the secret to Alchemy! It's so clear now; Wizards of the Coast have known it forever! They've been trying to tell us, but they couldn't do it blatently; they had to hide it in their D&D sourcebooks! Genius! Now all we have to do is decipher the code!

That image makes me laugh so hard. I love FMA.

[shadow_archmagi]

If you read the text, what it actually sounds like is a review of a DnD book.

You're right...

"Heft tome, pages thick and durable, interesting cover art, and dozens of interesting NPCs!"

Holy cow, these guys didn't just PLAY D&D, they read books about books about it!

[Aquillion]

Shouldn't that be in German, though?

[Roderick_BR]

Hehehe. That was interesting. The producers of the anime needed something to fill space, I believe.

[Waspinator]

You're right...

"Heft tome, pages thick and durable, interesting cover art, and dozens of interesting NPCs!"

Holy cow, these guys didn't just PLAY D&D, they read books about books about it!

That's what I thought too. Obviously, it's some kind of cunning code to conceal the secret to eternal life!

"This technique of animation filler has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations!"

[Chronicled]

Al isn't a warforged. Warforgeds are still alive and need stuff like breathing.

Al is an animated suit of fullplate and True mind switch sheningans. He's completely immune to critical hits, disease, effects that affect living beings, doesn't need to rest and clearly has some sick DR. Also he can be worn and deconstructed whitout trouble.

Warforged don't have to breathe, eat, sleep, etc. They're immune to disease and poison (and some other effects that target living creatures), can get DR and crit immunity with feats, etc.

About the only difference for all practical purposes is that they aren't hollow inside.

Besides, I didn't say Al IS a warforged; it's just that a warforged with a kid's mind inside who wants his body back (hence the True Mind Switch... or you could just have a delusional warforged), is usable for statting him out--with no mechanical tweaking really needed.

[Waspinator]

Well, except for the fact that Al didn't really seem vulnerable to anything I'd call a critical hit. He did have the rather large weakness of the blood seal, though.

Anyway, if I was going to try to stat out FMA Alchemy for D&D, I'd probably start with the Warlock class since they're basically spell-users that can use their abilities apparently unlimited times per day and that'd make a good baseline for keeping them balanced. Eldritch Blast would make a good starting point for things like Roy Mustang's flame powers. I might mix in some of the Tome of Battle, too, to represent how a lot of Alchemists seem to mix in martial arts to their fighting styles.

[Tokiko Mima]

Shouldn't that be in German, though?

It depends. The first time Ed goes to the other side of the gate in the anime it's to London, so it makes sense that a language identical to English is spoken in Ed and Al's world. But the movie sequel suggests that Central is equivalent to Berlin in Germany so there's a lot of Translation Convention going on between the language of Amestris, German and English.

[Wraithy]

Thank god they didn't make homunculi the same, would've made the series alot less interesting.

[Knaight]

EDIT:Or maybe it's that ALL alchemy books are written in code. Remember Edward saying once that every Alchemist worth his salt would hide his research under a scecial code? Who would suspect that an inocent board game actually holds the secrets to bend the laws of reality?

Jack Chick.

[Revlid]

Jack Chick.

Would you like your internet heated up for you, sir?

[Storm Bringer]

Would you like your internet heated up for you, sir?

no no, thankyou. I'ts more than hot enough for my needs

*starts frying an egg*

Who would suspect that an inocent board game actually holds the secrets to bend the laws of reality?

Jack Chick.

genius. allow me to present both of you with a Interweb.

[fireinthedust]

Actually, FMA really shouldn't have put published material in their animation like this.

It can be sued: first, it's published material from a source. I've job-shadowed at production companies and there are people who's only job is to double-check that phone numbers and names *do not* match with real people. Newspapers have to have bogus stories in them, or the company uses random letters. They do this so they don't get sued. If it really is a bastion press book, FMA had better have the permission of the publisher to use their material. It's effectively plagiarism.

second: I don't know if reprinting material from another source counts as breach of the OGL. They may have hidden the license somewhere else in the episode, but there you go, maybe same deal. I'm not sure about this part, but it's theoretically possible.

[Tengu_temp]

Like the Japanese care about stuff like that.